Nazi Medical Experiments

German Foundation Boosts Payments to Victims of Nazi Medical Experiments

The United States welcomes the decision of the German Foundation "Remembrance, Responsibility, and the Future" to distribute payments of approximately $3,200 to each of over 7,000 victims of Nazi "medical" experimentation. These survivors live in the United States, Israel, and other countries in Europe and around the world. This payment follows an initial payment of $5,400 previously made to victims of these experiments.

The United States recognizes that no sum of money can compensate the victims of "medical" experiments for their suffering. Nevertheless, these payments are a recognition of their suffering and will permit them to receive a measure of justice in their lifetimes.

The German Foundation was established in 2000 to make payments to several categories of victims of the Nazis. The Government of the Federal Republic of Germany and German companies funded the Foundation with contributions totaling over $5 billion. Among the Foundation’s primary recipients are former slave and forced laborers who were taken from their homes in countries occupied by Nazi Germany to work under horrific conditions in concentration or work camps. To date, the Foundation has made payments to over 1.7 million Nazi victims residing around the world.

The U.S. applauds the efforts of the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the German Foundation, German Ambassador Hans Otto Brauetigam, who worked closely with the Board members to accomplish this outcome. We also appreciate the important role that the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany, an advocate on the Board for Holocaust victims, played in this effort. Ambassador Edward B. O’Donnell, Special Envoy for Holocaust Issues, represents the United States Government on the Board.

2005/285 Released on March 8, 2005 Press Statement Richard Boucher, Spokesman Washington, DC March 8, 2005